"I don't know how we're going to get out of what is happening to us" : Three months after the breakup of the social movement, Chile struggles between anxiety, hope and uncertainty over the outcome of an unprecedented challenge that has taken the political class by surprise.
Until October 18, the South American country was praised as one of the most stable in Latin America, praised for its good macroeconomic results. Three months later, institutions have never seemed so weak, shaken by an unprecedented social sling, triggered by an increase in the metro ticket in Santiago and fueled by anger at the deep socio-economic inequalities.
Conservative President Sebastian Piñera, who will be at the middle of his second term in March, saw his popularity drop to 6%, a historic low since the return of democracy in 1990, according to a survey by the Center for Studies. services (CEP) published Thursday.
A "Cross punishment" not only to the wealthy 70-year-old businessman, but also to the entire Chilean political class, said Ricardo Gonzalez of the CEP.
Carabinieri, police responsible for maintaining order, accused of numerous human rights violations against demonstrators, experienced the same vertiginous fall: garnering 57% of favorable opinions in August 2015, they are now at hardly supported by 17% of the population, according to the same survey.
According to Matias Fernandez, professor of sociology at the Catholic University of Chile, "The whole political system (…) has had enormous difficulties in managing this social earthquake because it does not have the tools to process information, to process requests" faced with a movement which, three months after its launch, remains without a leader and has not benefited any party.
In three months, neither the right in power, nor the center and the left in the opposition have managed to recover anger from the street. The protests, which have marked time in the country, but continue, with more or less crowds, on Friday in Santiago, continue to be organized through social networks.
New calls for demonstrations were launched in Santiago to commemorate in the evening the three months of the movement, which left 29 dead, including five after the intervention of the police, and more than 2,000 wounded, including 350 been severely affected in the eyes.
Criticism of the ultra-liberal model
Despite the lack of partisan references, social and political news, criticism of the ultraliberal economic model have become the first subjects of conversation for Chileans, who will have to decide on April 26 if they wish to change the Constitution inherited from the dictatorship of Augusto Pinochet (1973-1990), a strong demand from the social movement.
We are far from the presidential election campaign of 2017, won by Mr. Piñera, already in power from 2010 to 2014, where one of the main concerns was delinquency, the rate of which is however one of the lowest in 'Latin America.
"I do not know how we are going to get out of what is happening to us, hope it will be good for all Chileans", says Cecilia Vergara, a 40-year-old architect. If she does not take to the streets to demonstrate, she says she continues to support the demands expressed since the start of the dispute.
Today predominates "A climate of uncertainty, this kind of tension between hope and concern (…) which has characterized the situation of the country since the beginning of the movement", confirms Matias Fernandez.
Despite the numerous social concessions granted by the government (50% increase in the minimum retirement age, employers' contributions to the pension scheme, freezing of electricity prices, etc.), 55 to 60% of Chileans continue to support the movement, according to two recent polls. President Piñera said in a message to the nation on Thursday "To get hands-on to help Chileans solve their many problems, help them take advantage of their many abilities and also help them realize their dreams".
